Can Maryland Become the Next Great Wine State?

In the mountains of Western Maryland, a world away from the Chesapeake Bay that dominates so much of the state’s industry and culture, is a man on a mission to change Maryland’s signature drink.

Lowbrow Natty Boh beer paired with bushels of blue crabs or chugged at a local bar? Forget it.

Joe Fiola Ph.D. ’86 wants you to drink Maryland wine.

But you might think: Does Maryland even make wine? (Yes, in every county.) Is it any good? (It wins gold medals.) Why should I try it? (To save the environmental costs of shipping your preferred Australian or French wine, and to make good on that locavore pledge.)

“We can compete with anyone in the world,” says Fiola, principal agent and extension specialist at the Western Maryland Research and Education Center (WMREC). “Taste the wines. There’s the proof.”
More